Increased internet speeds for Bluff, Duaringa and Dingo through government funding

Three Central Highlands towns will have access to faster internet and better connectivity through the government funding. And it’s a big win for the region’s students.

Bluff, Dingo and Duaringa will soon have access to faster internet speeds as part of a committment to bridge the connectivity gap in regional communities.

Regional Central Highlanders will soon have access to faster internet and better connectivity, benefiting schools, businesses, visitors and the wider community.

QCN Fibre has been awarded Australian Government funding under the Regional Connectivity Program for solutions in Bluff, Duaringa, and Dingo.

The funding allows QCN Fibre, in partnership with Retail Service Provider MarchNet, to deliver a fixed wireless solution with fibre backhaul to provide coverage and minimum 100Mbps broadband, and up to 1Gbps, to businesses and residents of these towns.

QCN Fibre’s chief executive officer, Derek Merdith, said the company was committed to bridging the connectivity gap in regional communities.

“This will effectively provide a 10 to 100-fold increase in digital speeds for the hundreds of residents, schools, businesses and government services in these towns,” he said.

“It is great news for these communities and reaffirms QCN Fibre’s commitment to bridge the digital divide that is prevalent in too many remote parts of Queensland.”.

The solution will leverage QCN Fibre’s telecommunications assets between the Duaringa and Bluff electricity substations to provide a fibre interconnection point for fibre backhaul.

Retail Service Provider and partner, MarchNet, will leverage their expertise in deploying wireless solutions for remote areas to deliver the fixed wireless infrastructure at each town and provide retail fixed wireless broadband services to businesses and residents.

“All schools in Duaringa, Dingo and Bluff report that while they have enough computers for one per student, the current slow internet speeds mean that they can only have three or four students online at any given time,” Mr Merdith said.

“Online programs either take prohibitively long times to download, or do not download at all.

“Without the increased internet speeds, the long-term impact on these students would be significant.”

Central Highlands Development Corporation’s Peter Dowling said the region required further investment to ensure more communities were better connected.

“The lack of consistent connectivity and telecommunications infrastructure are clear barriers to development in our region,” he said.

“Whether it be a classroom of children trying to learn via the internet, telehealth options or business operators hamstrung in their commerce – our region requires more investment in practical solutions.

“We’re pleased that through the partnership with QCN Fibre, driven by extensive grassroots data provided via the Economic Recovery and Transition Project, we’ve collectively been successful with the announcement of funding for the communities of Duaringa, Dingo and Bluff.”

The Australian Federal Government has been awarded $3.754M in funding to QCN Fibre under the Regional Connectivity Program.

Originally published as Increased internet speeds for Bluff, Duaringa and Dingo through government funding